


An Amphibious Solution

by LadyThrimbletrimmer



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-05 02:29:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10295489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyThrimbletrimmer/pseuds/LadyThrimbletrimmer
Summary: Simple little post-canon piece about Alphys and Undyne solving a jigsaw puzzle.





	

“You know what I miss? The puzzles.”

 

“What?” Alphys looked up from her game. Undyne was laying back on her yoga ball, absent-mindedly rocking back and forth as she stared up at the ceiling.

 

“I miss ‘em, you know? They were nice. Up here there’s just rules that I’m supposed to already know. I always feel like I’m going to end up someplace I shouldn’t.” Undyne scowled at a speck of dirt on the ceiling.  “A puzzle says ‘if you can beat me, then you belong here.’ It’s… I don’t know. Honest.”

 

Of course, Undyne was deliberately neglecting to mention the fact that she usually ignored the puzzles- or perhaps she felt that jumping over and punching through counted as “beating.” But that wasn’t important. Alphys could see the opportunity. She closed her handheld and lept off the couch.

 

Undyne looked up from her ball. “What’s up, babe?”   
  


“I’ve got a plan,” Alphys said, struggling through the sudden dizziness. “I’ll go get us a puzzle!”

 

“Alphys, you don’t have to do that.”

 

“No, you’ll see. It’ll be great!” She clenched her little yellow fist in a show of bravado.  “It’s time for me to take charge. With your resolve in my heart, I can burn through this challenge!”

 

Undyne watched as Alphys strode to the front door. “I didn’t actually care that much, but this is way too hot for me to stop you.” 

 

Alphys winked at her girlfriend as she opened the front door. “I’ll be back before you know it.” She swaggered out on her journey.

 

A few seconds passed, and the door opened again. Alphys stepped back through the front door.  Snow had already started to accumulate on her nose and shoulders.  

 

“C-cold” she said.

 

After several more false starts and returns to retrieve various items, Alphys was finally off.  Undyne continued stretching on her yoga ball for about twenty minutes before she got up and wandered into the kitchen.  She filled their electric kettle and set it to boil.  Then she rummaged in the pantry for a minute, retrieving peanut butter and crackers.

 

It took nearly an hour for Alphys to return, by which time the peppermint tea was nearly cold. Undyne had destroyed most of the crackers with her vigorous attempts at spreading peanut butter on them, but there were a decent number on the plate.

 

“Here’s th-the puzzle!” Alphys said, triumphantly brandishing the box.

 

“I like the bird.”

 

“Thanks!” Alphys sat down at the kitchen table and set to opening the box.  Most of her claws Alphys had filed down into softness, but the one on her pinky she kept sharp for exactly this sort of scenario. It made quick work of the plastic wrap, and soon she had the box open and the pieces dumped out on the table. 

 

Undyne brought over the plate of crackers and two lukewarm mugs. “So how does this work?” Undyne asked, scooting her chair next to Alphys. 

 

“Well, there are these puzzle pieces.” 

 

“I’m listening.”

 

“We set them on the table so that the colorful side is face-up.”

 

“With you so far.”

 

“The pieces attach to each other as you match the shape of each side.”

 

“Seems reasonable.”

 

“And when you’ve put all the pieces together, it makes the image on the box.”

 

“Then what happens?”

 

Alphys started sweating. “That- that’s it.” 

 

It sounded so stupid now.  Of course, Undyne was used to puzzles where something happened at the end. She had probably expected Alphys to build a contraption that dumped you into the basement if you didn’t cross the hallway correctly.

 

“Cool!” said Undyne. “I was worried that you were going to make something that dumped you into the basement if you didn’t cross the hallway correctly.”

 

Whew.

 

They set to work on the puzzle, sipping tea as snow drifted past the kitchen window.  Alphys did the larger share of the actual solving, mostly because Undyne kept fixating on pieces that just barely did not fit together.  Occasionally one of them would be so close to finding the right piece, but a gentle smooch from the other would disrupt her train of thought into a fizzing haze of red-faced giggling.

 

“Ugh, this piece is annoying.”

 

“What’s up?”

 

“Well, this blue doesn’t fit into anywhere on this section of bird or this section of sky.”

 

“Hmm. Oh, maybe it’s actually one of the flowers we haven’t started yet.”

 

“Wait, we’re allowed to look at the picture on the box?”

 

“Yyyes?”

 

“Thank goodness, that makes this way easier.”

  
  


The afternoon wore into evening.  They had most of the edges done, and a decent chunk of the bird itself. Alphys poured out two glasses of wine and dumped a bag of ready-made stir-fry into a pan. They ate at the counter to avoid spilling on the puzzle.

 

As the sky grew darker, their phones buzzed.

 

“Winter storm warning.  Looks like the roads will be closed tomorrow.”

 

“Nice, a snow day.  We should call the gang, see who wants to hang out.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Something up?”

 

“Uh. Yeah.” Alphys was wringing her hands. “We’ve been working on the puzzle all afternoon. And. Um. You’ve been leaning on me. With your muscles.”

 

“Was I hurting you? I’m sorry!”

 

“No, no. Um. I was, uh, enjoying it. And, I was wondering. Um.”

 

“Oh.” Undyne flashed her trademark sharklike grin. “Alphys, three years and you still can’t spit it out?”

 

Alphys gave a pleading whimper in response.

 

“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. What did you want?”

 

Another whimper, more desperate this time.

 

“I can’t hear you, Alphy.”

 

“ _undynepleasecometobedwithme_!!!”

 

“NOW THAT’S WHAT I WANT TO HEAR!” With a delighted squeal from Alphys, Undyne scooped her up into her arms and bounded up the stairs.

 

After that initial day, they worked on the puzzle for short periods of time.  It took shape over the next few weeks, set back occasionally by attempts to force pieces where they didn’t fit and finding pieces that did fit where they shouldn’t. When the picture was complete, Undyne insisted upon framing it 

 

“We did this together.  This is the trophy from our shared victory!” she said, despite Alphys insisting that most humans just broke the puzzles back up to solve again another day. But she did admit that it looked nice up among the posters up in their room.  What really made it special was that, in the corner, Undyne had stuck a photo of the two of them. They were smiling in front of the completed puzzle, hand in hand.  



End file.
